Baton Rouge

Baton Rouge is the capital of the US state of Louisiana and its second-largest city, located on the eastern bank of the Mississippi River. The city was founded in 1699 when Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville led an exploration party up the river, and the town was named for the red pole that marked the border between two tribal hunting grounds; Baton-Rouge means "red stick" in French. In 1721, a military post was established by French colonists, and a large population of Cajuns (refugees from New France) settled in the region during the late 1750s and 1760s. In 1763, Baton Rouge was ceded to Great Britain at the end of the French and Indian War, only to be taken over by Spain after the American Revolutionary War in 1783. The Spanish established Fort San Carlos in the city, but they were unable to quell local unrest among Yankee settlers who arrived in the area after the 1803 Louisiana Purchase. On 23 September 1810, rebels under Fulwar Skipwith occupied Fort San Carlos and proclaimed the "Republic of West Florida", claiming that Louisiana rightfully belonged to the United States. On 10 December 1810, the US Army annexed West Florida after forcing Skipwith to surrender at Baton Rouge, and the city became a part of the USA. The city became the political hub for the state after it was made the state capital, and its port became the tenth largest in the USA. The city also became a cultural center, as it was inhabited by a diverse mix of immigrants from Europe and Africa, with mixed American, French, Spanish, African, and Native American influences. In 2015, Baton Rouge had a population of 228,590 people.